Five individuals associated with a drug trafficking organization have entered guilty pleas to federal charges, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. The accused include Rito Alvarado Gomez, 36, who pleaded guilty to Drug Conspiracy; Jose Alberto Alvarado Gomez, 34; Ricardo Villeda, 26; and Iris Yoselin Luna-Herrera, 27, all of whom pleaded guilty to Distribution of Methamphetamine. Ana Isabel Frayre Barboza, 38, admitted guilt to Misprision of Felony.
The indictment alleged that from 2018 until March 13, 2024, the defendants conspired to possess and distribute methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Oklahoma and beyond.
This case is part of an investigation conducted by several agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN), as well as task forces from Hope and Nashville in Arkansas. Additional support came from law enforcement agencies such as the Arkansas State Police and local police departments.
The prosecution is linked to an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) initiative aimed at dismantling high-level drug traffickers and related criminal organizations using a collaborative approach involving various law enforcement entities.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Jason A. Robertson accepted the pleas in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. A presentence investigation report has been ordered for all defendants. While Rito Alvarado Gomez, Jose Alberto Alvarado Gomez, Ricardo Villeda, and Iris Yoselin Luna-Herrera remain in custody pending sentencing under U.S. Marshals Service supervision, Ana Isabel Frayre Barboza was permitted release on bond awaiting sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erin Cornell and Jordan Howanitz represented the government in this matter.